Recurring Themes
In June in Xianyang, in China’s Shaanxi province, a family hired a service for the equivalent of $4,400 to dig up a female corpse for their recently deceased son to “marry.” It’s the latest incidence of trying to overcome a centuries-old curse that forecasts a bad afterlife for men who die unmarried. In shootings in…
The Haunting in Connecticut
2009 While it adds nothing new to the haunted-house genre, “The Haunting in Connecticut” is a decent entry in that column, and one that works better at home than it did in theaters. Many looked at its PG-13 rating and deemed it a TV movie, but you know what? Embrace that label, dim the lights…
Least Competent Criminals
Kendrick Pitts, 20, and his brother Marquise, 19, were arrested in May in the ladies’ room of a small office building in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where they were hiding in stalls after being chased by police investigating a stolen truck. Their ruse failed when they tried, using falsetto voices, to persuade the cops that the…
Recurring Themes
In June in Xianyang, in China’s Shaanxi province, a family hired a service for the equivalent of $4,400 to dig up a female corpse for their recently deceased son to “marry.” It’s the latest incidence of trying to overcome a centuries-old curse that forecasts a bad afterlife for men who die unmarried. In shootings in…
Least Competent Criminals
Kendrick Pitts, 20, and his brother Marquise, 19, were arrested in May in the ladies’ room of a small office building in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where they were hiding in stalls after being chased by police investigating a stolen truck. Their ruse failed when they tried, using falsetto voices, to persuade the cops that the…
News That Sounds Like a Joke
In May, police in Winder, Ga. (pop. 10,200), arrested a marijuana seller with a quite-low-tech delivery system. A wireless doorbell was hidden on a tree in woods alongside a house, and when the buzzer sounded, a bucket was lowered from a second-story window. The buyer put money in, the bucket was raised, and the dope…
Latest Religious Messages
The Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Prayer order in La Crosse, Wis., is now in its 131st consecutive year of around-the-clock prayer, in shifts, at its Adoration Chapel. The Sisters’ ritual is based on an 1865 promise by the order’s superior that if God graced their ministries with success, they would build a chapel and pray…
Smooth Reactions
Crisis Intervention: A certain bridge in Ghangzhou, China, has become popular for suicide (12 attempts in a 45-day period in April and May), and with each incident, traffic is slowed or halted for hours while crews attempt to talk the distraught person down or perform rescues. Mr. “Chen” was on the ledge in May, according…
Prison Break: The Final Break
2009 Let’s hope “Prison Break: The Final Break” stays true to its title, because really, how many institutions of incarceration can Michael Scofield (Wentworth Miller) break into/out of? With “Prison Break” having recently ended its four-year run, “The Final Break” is two new episodes that fit together to comprise one movie. In a way, it’s…
News That Sounds Like a Joke
In May, police in Winder, Ga. (pop. 10,200), arrested a marijuana seller with a quite-low-tech delivery system. A wireless doorbell was hidden on a tree in woods alongside a house, and when the buzzer sounded, a bucket was lowered from a second-story window. The buyer put money in, the bucket was raised, and the dope…
Latest Religious Messages
The Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Prayer order in La Crosse, Wis., is now in its 131st consecutive year of around-the-clock prayer, in shifts, at its Adoration Chapel. The Sisters’ ritual is based on an 1865 promise by the order’s superior that if God graced their ministries with success, they would build a chapel and pray…
Smooth Reactions
Crisis Intervention: A certain bridge in Ghangzhou, China, has become popular for suicide (12 attempts in a 45-day period in April and May), and with each incident, traffic is slowed or halted for hours while crews attempt to talk the distraught person down or perform rescues. Mr. “Chen” was on the ledge in May, according…
Dollhouse: Season One
2008-2009 Welcome to the “Dollhouse.” Joss Whedon’s latest post-“Buffy” effort got off to a suspect start amid a difficult-to-describe concept, network indifference and all-around bad buzz. One wonders how it got renewed for a second season, but check out “Season One” and see: What starts out mediocre gets markedly better. The series surrounds an underground…
Aggressive Scientologists
Scientology trains its leaders a good deal more aggressively than other religions do, judging by the revelations by four former church officials to the St. Petersburg Times in June. In an exercise concocted by founder L. Ron Hubbard, leaders who screw up are taken out to sea and forced off a gangplank with the admonition,…
Norman establishment hosts ‘Biggest Loser’ auditions
Grab a partner and audition for a chance to be on NBC’s reality show “The Biggest Loser.” Television producers are searching for contestants all over the country eager to be the next weight-loss champion, and will hold auditions and interviews 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday at O’Connell’s Irish Pub & Grille, 769 Asp in…
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
During his time in hiding, the Biblical prophet Elijah was kept alive by ravens who brought him food. John the Baptist survived on nothing but honey and locusts when he was roaming the wilderness. And I’m sure that some unexpected source of comfort and sustenance will likewise turn up during your wanderings, Sagittarius. It may…
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
Don’t concern yourself with praying to the gods of luck and chance. I’ll take care of that for you. Your job is to solicit the favor of the gods of diligence and discipline. Why? Because I think you’ve got a lot of good work ahead of you — work that will take ingenious attention to…
Okie hope
As term limits officially prevent Gov. Brad Henry from running again in 2010, Republicans are now poised to seize the gubernatorial position in addition to controlling the Legislature, tightening the noose on any chance of a more-than-nominal Democratic voice in Oklahoma politics. Traditionally, Democrats ran the show in Oklahoma. The people have elected only four…
OSP takes a break from the Bard to tackle ‘Misalliance’
In the preface to his 1909 comedy “Misalliance,” George Bernard Shaw observed that “Marriage is not a single invariable institution: it changes from civilization to civilization, from religion to religion, from civil code to civil code, from frontier to frontier.” Take that, Rep. Sally Kern. For its once-a-season scheduled break from the Bard, Oklahoma Shakespeare…
EPA cites two Oklahoma companies for potential pollution problems
An Oklahoma City compost products company is the focus of cease and desist orders from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry after inspectors found that water running off huge manure piles could potentially flow into the Oklahoma River. The EPA order was issued for violations of the federal…
Oklahoma Republicans split between social, economic conservatives
n this, Republicans have steadily benefited politically. But in the 2008 presidential election, the economy became the primary issue, which is one of the reasons President Barack Obama won, Frank said. In Oklahoma, however, where Republican presidential candidate John McCain won every county, social issues are still key, Gaddie said. He called Oklahoma a “recession-resistant”…
Okie hope
As term limits officially prevent Gov. Brad Henry from running again in 2010, Republicans are now poised to seize the gubernatorial position in addition to controlling the Legislature, tightening the noose on any chance of a more-than-nominal Democratic voice in Oklahoma politics. Traditionally, Democrats ran the show in Oklahoma. The people have elected only four…
Cultural Diversity
The nomadic Vadi tribe, in the Indian state of Gujarat, continues to be adept at flouting the country’s 18-year-old ban on snake-charming. Historically, the Vadi have taught their children, beginning at age 2, to be at peace with cobras through affection and respect. According to a June dispatch in London’s Daily Telegraph, male children practice…
Number of Oklahoma cattle thefts rises
Well, here’s something you don’t read every day ” at least, not since horseless carriages became popular: the rate of cattle rustling has doubled since 2008. Yes, cattle rustling, as in stealing cows. We wonder if a gunslinger who frequents the local saloon is going to get on the case? His name is John Wayne,…
True West: An Illustrated Guide to the Heyday of the Western – Michael Barson
TCU Press As a born-and-bred Oklahoman, how could I not grow up with at least a little love for the Western? In the ’70s, I innocently played “cowboys and Indians” like so many other kids did, before such a thing became un-PC. I dutifully watched afternoon reruns of “The Lone Ranger” on TV. At lunch,…
ARIES (March 21-April 19):
Storm chasers are people who love traveling around the continent in pursuit of wild weather. Nothing feeds their lust for life more than getting up close and personal with a tornado or supercell thunderstorm. Many of them are meteorologists who are curious about the way storms work; they’re not motivated solely by bravado. I mention…
Mayor prioritizes modern streetcar in OKC for MAPS 3
If Oklahoma City is to be a destination ” one with an active, jazzy nightlife in Bricktown and a world-class, millions-of-dollars new convention center, how will people get around when they arrive? EMERGING STREETCAR UNABASHED SUPPORT CANAL EXTENSION ROUTE CANAL The proposed convention center will possibly be located somewhere south of the existing Interstate 40.…
Oklahoma bands new, known take center stage at Tulsa’s Dfest
IN: auto 0in”>Lusk sees the benefit in playing a festival crowd versus a typical show with just support acts and headliners. “Personally, I think anything is beneficial if a band is willing to take advantage of it,” he said, “but naturally at a festival, I find that a lot of people are there just for…
Some OKC entities stand to benefit in a MAPS 3 proposal
requested the entire study, Marcus Elwell, the chamber’s public relations coordinator, said “in order to do the study we had to sign non-disclosure agreements with competitor cities and facilities preventing us from releasing their data and the full study.” When will the full study be released? “It is not something that has been discussed since…
Harkins Bricktown Cinemas presents ‘Summer Movie Fun’
Take a break from the blistering heat and have some “Summer Movie Fun” with your kids at Harkins Bricktown Cinemas. Each week this summer, Harkins is screening child-friendly movies early in the morning for a reduced price of $2 per day or $5 per summer pass, which grants access to the 10 program movies all…
Oklahoma City man goes from witness to alleged suspect
According to a story in The Oklahoman, Oklahoma City police arrested a man who was a witness to a hit-and-run accident near N.W. 63rd and Portland Avenue. Seems odd to arrest a witness who hung around after the accident to speak with police on what he saw. It is usually commendable for a bystander to…
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
During his time in hiding, the Biblical prophet Elijah was kept alive by ravens who brought him food. John the Baptist survived on nothing but honey and locusts when he was roaming the wilderness. And I’m sure that some unexpected source of comfort and sustenance will likewise turn up during your wanderings, Sagittarius. It may…
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
In behalf of all the other signs, I’d like to express our gratitude for the jumpstarts you Scorpios give us. The jolts aren’t always bliss-inducing, true, but in retrospect we often say, “Thanks, I really needed that.” We also appreciate the debates you embroil us in. They force us to take stands on issues we’ve…
MAPS 3 could bring massive central park to OKC downtown area
If MAPS 3 wends its way through the maze of approval and retains its current form, the cracked asphalt that rambles around the Salvation Army and the empty U.S. Postal Service terminal south of Interstate 40 will be unearthed to reveal a paradise, buried for decades in a dense, urban casket. GRAND SCHEME FIRST CENTRAL…
Oklahoma City Museum of Art screens ‘Goodbye Solo’
The Solo of “Goodbye Solo” is a cab driver (Souleymane Sy Savane) in Winston-Salem, N.C. Originally from Senegal, he has family back in the old country to which he sends as much of his paycheck as he can afford. In the grand tradition of cabbies, he’s a chatty guy who can talk about almost anything.…
Museum’s photography exhibit examines women’s roles
A new photography exhibit opening Friday profiles of women in the late 1800s and early 1900s who stepped beyond the boundaries of traditional expectations for gender roles. The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum’s “Not Just a Housewife: The Changing Roles of Women in the West” exhibit is comprised primarily of photos from the museum’s…
Some OKC entities stand to benefit in a MAPS 3 proposal
requested the entire study, Marcus Elwell, the chamber’s public relations coordinator, said “in order to do the study we had to sign non-disclosure agreements with competitor cities and facilities preventing us from releasing their data and the full study.” When will the full study be released? “It is not something that has been discussed since…
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
Did life feel meaningless last week? Was your destiny a random sequence of events shepherding you to a series of different nowheres? Even worse, were you convinced that human beings are toxic scum? If so, Leo, get ready for your mood to shift drastically. The whims of fate are mutating. Soon, a source of curses…
The Harn Homestead works with American Association of Museums
The Harn Homestead & 1889ers Museum, Oklahoma City’s long-existing monument to Central Oklahoma’s land run legacy, is making a run of its own. SPEARHEADING PIONEER LIVING FOCUS GROUP RESULTS The nonprofit’s goal is simple: to make the Homestead ” a collection of territorial homes and buildings on 10 acres near N.E. 16th Street and Lincoln…
Twist of fate lands golf coach south of expected destination
Good timing can never be underestimated. It often effects lives and careers, and can be a factor in determining potential success. COURTING REPUTATION In Ryan Hybl’s case, Joe Castiglione’s timing could not have been more perfect, at least where the University of Oklahoma is concerned. And it worked out pretty well for Hybl, too, who…
Pole dancing takes front and center at Teaze Dance & Fitness
Oklahoma fitness facilities are getting in touch with their sexier side with an alternative form of exercise: pole dancing. Don’t worry. You can leave your hat on for this one. SENSUAL CLASS GET RILED “I really think the name of the game is, it’s all about fun. You know, people may feel good working out…
Oklahoma State University student makes waves with exhibition
While many artists use music to guide the rhythm of their brushstrokes, it doesn’t often move beyond accompaniment to canvas. But for Rachel Marks, an Oklahoma State University art student, the resonance of an instrument and its shape and contours are the subject of a series of oil and watercolor paintings. ROTATION ENSEMBLE “I used…
Revolutionary War pastors group includes Rep. Sally Kern’s husband
Leaders at Olivet Baptist Church, located at 1201 N.W. 10th in Oklahoma City, refuse to abandon a neighborhood they see as in need of help, providing literacy instruction and sports leagues to neighborhood children, toys for the children of incarcerated parents, as well as food and clothing to the poor in their neighborhood. RADIO LISTENERS…
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
I usually applaud your inclination to remain above the fray and churn out astute observations. I normally honor your instinct to distance yourself from petty partisan squabbles. But this week’s different. For the foreseeable future, I’d like it very much if you dive into the pit with the other diehards and fight with hardnosed audacity…
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
You should closely monitor your environment for beguiling appearances of the number seven. I have reason to believe that seven may be involved in your current inconveniences and dilemmas. I theorize that seven has been trying to call attention to itself in an odd or irritating manner so as to get you to tune in…
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
Burn the Book of Love you’ve been using these past few years, Capricorn, even if you just do it metaphorically. Don’t think of the incineration as censorship. Think of it as liberating yourself from the tyranny of fables that have programmed you to accept less love than you deserve and give less love than you…
TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
Let’s say that you lost a treasured object a while back. What do you think the odds are that you’ll find it this week? Or let’s say that a bewildering companion walked out of your life many moons ago. How much do you want to bet that your paths will cross again soon? According to…
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
You should closely monitor your environment for beguiling appearances of the number seven. I have reason to believe that seven may be involved in your current inconveniences and dilemmas. I theorize that seven has been trying to call attention to itself in an odd or irritating manner so as to get you to tune in…
Upcoming summit focuses on economic benefits of early childhood development
For the first day of kindergarten, your child needs crayons, glue and brain stimulation that was supposed to start when he was born. Three experts in the fields of economics and early childhood education will speak to business leaders at the Oklahoma Economic Summit on Early Childhood Investment Monday to express the importance of early…
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
I usually applaud your inclination to remain above the fray and churn out astute observations. I normally honor your instinct to distance yourself from petty partisan squabbles. But this week’s different. For the foreseeable future, I’d like it very much if you dive into the pit with the other diehards and fight with hardnosed audacity…
O’ Horten
The appeal of foreign movies often rests not so much in the story as the environment in which that story takes place. Good ones paint a portrait “? either intentionally or unintentionally “? of the time and place it represents, leaving viewers with a sense of what it was like to exist there. “O’ Horten,”…
Oklahoma County commissioner favors taxpayer-funded jail
No one knows the Oklahoma City price tag of a potential MAPS 3 proposal. Mayor Mick Cornett says it could be in the ballpark of the first two projects, which ranged from about $300 million the first time to the MAPS for Kids price tag (roughly $500 million from sales tax revenue with about $180…
Mayor prioritizes modern streetcar in OKC for MAPS 3
If Oklahoma City is to be a destination ” one with an active, jazzy nightlife in Bricktown and a world-class, millions-of-dollars new convention center, how will people get around when they arrive? EMERGING STREETCAR UNABASHED SUPPORT CANAL EXTENSION ROUTE CANAL The proposed convention center will possibly be located somewhere south of the existing Interstate 40.…
Twist of fate lands golf coach south of expected destination
Good timing can never be underestimated. It often effects lives and careers, and can be a factor in determining potential success. COURTING REPUTATION In Ryan Hybl’s case, Joe Castiglione’s timing could not have been more perfect, at least where the University of Oklahoma is concerned. And it worked out pretty well for Hybl, too, who…
Upcoming summit focuses on economic benefits of early childhood development
For the first day of kindergarten, your child needs crayons, glue and brain stimulation that was supposed to start when he was born. Three experts in the fields of economics and early childhood education will speak to business leaders at the Oklahoma Economic Summit on Early Childhood Investment Monday to express the importance of early…
TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
Let’s say that you lost a treasured object a while back. What do you think the odds are that you’ll find it this week? Or let’s say that a bewildering companion walked out of your life many moons ago. How much do you want to bet that your paths will cross again soon? According to…
Cultural Diversity
The nomadic Vadi tribe, in the Indian state of Gujarat, continues to be adept at flouting the country’s 18-year-old ban on snake-charming. Historically, the Vadi have taught their children, beginning at age 2, to be at peace with cobras through affection and respect. According to a June dispatch in London’s Daily Telegraph, male children practice…
Poteet Theatre plays matchmaker with a well-tuned ‘Fiddler on the Roof’
For the third production of the season, Poteet Theater has tackled the 1964 Broadway classic “Fiddler on the Roof.” Set in 1905 in the village of Anatevka, “Fiddler” tells the story of a poor milkman named Tevye and his family, and their struggle to find happiness amidst a time of changing social values and growing…
MAPS 3 could bring massive central park to OKC downtown area
If MAPS 3 wends its way through the maze of approval and retains its current form, the cracked asphalt that rambles around the Salvation Army and the empty U.S. Postal Service terminal south of Interstate 40 will be unearthed to reveal a paradise, buried for decades in a dense, urban casket. GRAND SCHEME FIRST CENTRAL…
Patchwork problems
Unemployment at 25 percent, businesses going broke, banks not able to cash paychecks, farm prices plummeting to half of what they were the year before, foreclosures at an all time high ” it was the Great Depression. FDR presented the New Deal, World War II broke out, and our country rebounded stronger than ever. The…
Questionable Judgments
A June Government Accountability Office report revealed that people on the U.S.’s suspected-terrorist list tried to buy guns or explosives on at least 1,000 occasions in the last five years and were successful 90 percent of the time. One suspect managed to buy 50 pounds of explosives. Federal law treats the suspected-terrorist list as “no-fly”…
EPA cites two Oklahoma companies for potential pollution problems
An Oklahoma City compost products company is the focus of cease and desist orders from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry after inspectors found that water running off huge manure piles could potentially flow into the Oklahoma River. The EPA order was issued for violations of the federal…
Oklahoma County commissioner favors taxpayer-funded jail
No one knows the Oklahoma City price tag of a potential MAPS 3 proposal. Mayor Mick Cornett says it could be in the ballpark of the first two projects, which ranged from about $300 million the first time to the MAPS for Kids price tag (roughly $500 million from sales tax revenue with about $180…
Aggressive Scientologists
Scientology trains its leaders a good deal more aggressively than other religions do, judging by the revelations by four former church officials to the St. Petersburg Times in June. In an exercise concocted by founder L. Ron Hubbard, leaders who screw up are taken out to sea and forced off a gangplank with the admonition,…
Questionable Judgments
A June Government Accountability Office report revealed that people on the U.S.’s suspected-terrorist list tried to buy guns or explosives on at least 1,000 occasions in the last five years and were successful 90 percent of the time. One suspect managed to buy 50 pounds of explosives. Federal law treats the suspected-terrorist list as “no-fly”…
Oklahoma City man goes from witness to alleged suspect
According to a story in The Oklahoman, Oklahoma City police arrested a man who was a witness to a hit-and-run accident near N.W. 63rd and Portland Avenue. Seems odd to arrest a witness who hung around after the accident to speak with police on what he saw. It is usually commendable for a bystander to…
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
In behalf of all the other signs, I’d like to express our gratitude for the jumpstarts you Scorpios give us. The jolts aren’t always bliss-inducing, true, but in retrospect we often say, “Thanks, I really needed that.” We also appreciate the debates you embroil us in. They force us to take stands on issues we’ve…
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
Burn the Book of Love you’ve been using these past few years, Capricorn, even if you just do it metaphorically. Don’t think of the incineration as censorship. Think of it as liberating yourself from the tyranny of fables that have programmed you to accept less love than you deserve and give less love than you…
Charlie Robison bangs out bittersweet, hopeful breakup album
A star athlete and self-confessed hell-raiser, Charlie Robison is the brash, larger-than-life character you’d expect to hear singing Texas country. He’s got a folksy, forthright manner; likes his beer; and approaches life with a seat-of-the pants joie de vivre that’s always made him the “Life of the Party,” to steal the title of his 1998…
Oklahoma City Museum of Art screens ‘Goodbye Solo’
The Solo of “Goodbye Solo” is a cab driver (Souleymane Sy Savane) in Winston-Salem, N.C. Originally from Senegal, he has family back in the old country to which he sends as much of his paycheck as he can afford. In the grand tradition of cabbies, he’s a chatty guy who can talk about almost anything.…
Charlie Robison bangs out bittersweet, hopeful breakup album
A star athlete and self-confessed hell-raiser, Charlie Robison is the brash, larger-than-life character you’d expect to hear singing Texas country. He’s got a folksy, forthright manner; likes his beer; and approaches life with a seat-of-the pants joie de vivre that’s always made him the “Life of the Party,” to steal the title of his 1998…
Oklahoma Republicans split between social, economic conservatives
n this, Republicans have steadily benefited politically. But in the 2008 presidential election, the economy became the primary issue, which is one of the reasons President Barack Obama won, Frank said. In Oklahoma, however, where Republican presidential candidate John McCain won every county, social issues are still key, Gaddie said. He called Oklahoma a “recession-resistant”…
Norman Women’s Resource Center faces severe budget cuts
Many women in Norman search for comfort, assistance and understanding, and that’s what they find in the Women’s Resource Center. Open since 1973, the center aids victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse by offering counseling services, assisting in safety plans, offering a safe haven for women to stay and serving as a rape crisis…
Oklahoma senator uses throwback ‘I Love Lucy’ reference
Sen. Tom Coburn sure showed his age ” 61! ” when he resurrected a catchphrase from “I Love Lucy” during the July 15 confirmation hearing of Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor. “You’ll have lots of ‘splainin’ to do,” he said, in his best (read: not so hot; stick to medicine and legislation) Ricky Ricardo impersonation.…
The Harn Homestead works with American Association of Museums
The Harn Homestead & 1889ers Museum, Oklahoma City’s long-existing monument to Central Oklahoma’s land run legacy, is making a run of its own. SPEARHEADING PIONEER LIVING FOCUS GROUP RESULTS The nonprofit’s goal is simple: to make the Homestead ” a collection of territorial homes and buildings on 10 acres near N.E. 16th Street and Lincoln…
Lyric Theatre makes colorful casting choices for ‘Technicolor Dreamcoat’
Lyric Theatre makes a regular habit of bringing in national and regional talent, but for its production of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” the company has gone a little more mainstream, casting former “American Idol” finalists Anthony Fedorov and Diana DeGarmo. “Joseph” was written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, is based on…
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
Don’t concern yourself with praying to the gods of luck and chance. I’ll take care of that for you. Your job is to solicit the favor of the gods of diligence and discipline. Why? Because I think you’ve got a lot of good work ahead of you — work that will take ingenious attention to…
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
billion worldwide, the filmmakers strike a pitch-perfect balance of faithfulness to the J.K. Rowling novel without being too oblique for neophytes. This marks the second “Potter” outing for veteran British TV director David Yates (having also helmed 2007’s “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”), and here, he displays an impressive surefootedness with the…
GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
The seductive torments of insatiable desires are leaving you in peace, at least for now. That means you’re free to concentrate on the easier gratification of more satiable desires. I hope you’re open to that, Gemini; I hope you haven’t fallen for the illusion that hard-to-get pleasures are deeper and finer. Please believe me when…
Number of Oklahoma cattle thefts rises
Well, here’s something you don’t read every day ” at least, not since horseless carriages became popular: the rate of cattle rustling has doubled since 2008. Yes, cattle rustling, as in stealing cows. We wonder if a gunslinger who frequents the local saloon is going to get on the case? His name is John Wayne,…
Unmarked Cars selects singer, releases album
Lord knows good lead singers are hard to come by these days. Local boys Unmarked Cars suffered 30 auditions while trying to find a vocalist with the pipes to front their band, shuffling through a rogues’ gallery of less-than-stellar contenders. “We had a guy on meth and he would say, ‘I remember seeing you guys…
ARIES (March 21-April 19):
Storm chasers are people who love traveling around the continent in pursuit of wild weather. Nothing feeds their lust for life more than getting up close and personal with a tornado or supercell thunderstorm. Many of them are meteorologists who are curious about the way storms work; they’re not motivated solely by bravado. I mention…
Oklahoma senator uses throwback ‘I Love Lucy’ reference
Sen. Tom Coburn sure showed his age ” 61! ” when he resurrected a catchphrase from “I Love Lucy” during the July 15 confirmation hearing of Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor. “You’ll have lots of ‘splainin’ to do,” he said, in his best (read: not so hot; stick to medicine and legislation) Ricky Ricardo impersonation.…
Norman Women’s Resource Center faces severe budget cuts
Many women in Norman search for comfort, assistance and understanding, and that’s what they find in the Women’s Resource Center. Open since 1973, the center aids victims of domestic violence and sexual abuse by offering counseling services, assisting in safety plans, offering a safe haven for women to stay and serving as a rape crisis…
Harkins Bricktown Cinemas presents ‘Summer Movie Fun’
Take a break from the blistering heat and have some “Summer Movie Fun” with your kids at Harkins Bricktown Cinemas. Each week this summer, Harkins is screening child-friendly movies early in the morning for a reduced price of $2 per day or $5 per summer pass, which grants access to the 10 program movies all…
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
Did life feel meaningless last week? Was your destiny a random sequence of events shepherding you to a series of different nowheres? Even worse, were you convinced that human beings are toxic scum? If so, Leo, get ready for your mood to shift drastically. The whims of fate are mutating. Soon, a source of curses…
GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
The seductive torments of insatiable desires are leaving you in peace, at least for now. That means you’re free to concentrate on the easier gratification of more satiable desires. I hope you’re open to that, Gemini; I hope you haven’t fallen for the illusion that hard-to-get pleasures are deeper and finer. Please believe me when…
Patchwork problems
Unemployment at 25 percent, businesses going broke, banks not able to cash paychecks, farm prices plummeting to half of what they were the year before, foreclosures at an all time high ” it was the Great Depression. FDR presented the New Deal, World War II broke out, and our country rebounded stronger than ever. The…
Unmarked Cars selects singer, releases album
Lord knows good lead singers are hard to come by these days. Local boys Unmarked Cars suffered 30 auditions while trying to find a vocalist with the pipes to front their band, shuffling through a rogues’ gallery of less-than-stellar contenders. “We had a guy on meth and he would say, ‘I remember seeing you guys…
People With Issues
Lawyer Larry Wilder, who works part-time as city attorney for Jeffersonville, Ind., was found by police in the early morning hours of June 3, sleeping off an apparently heavy night of drinking. He was discovered in a neighbor’s yard, his head and torso inside a garbage can that was tipped over on its side, with…
People With Issues
Lawyer Larry Wilder, who works part-time as city attorney for Jeffersonville, Ind., was found by police in the early morning hours of June 3, sleeping off an apparently heavy night of drinking. He was discovered in a neighbor’s yard, his head and torso inside a garbage can that was tipped over on its side, with…
